Iraq to Texas

[Cannon2Cockpit]

I just joined this Forum today because I am looking for some advice. I am home from Iraq now with my Army National Guard unit. I am going to Start my Private License training in September. I just re-uped with my unit for 6 more years. That re-signing bonus will completely pay for that part of the deal. Also my GI Bill will pay for 60% of the rest of the training. I will be in Houston and am hoping to fly offshore for the the oil rigs. Anyone with Experience in this? Basically I want to know after all the proper training and licenses will I have what they are looking for. Will an Army Veteran with ten years in help on my resume. Are there any Vets on here doing what I am wanting to do? Any near Houston? actually anyone on here close to Houston? I really appreciate everyones posts on here. I have spent hours on here allready.

 

P.S. I am not a recruiter but If anyone would like to talk to me about joining the GUARD I would be more than happy to talk to you without being pushy. It has seriously helped me out and if you choose the right job like I did you will get 20,000 for a signing bonus and the GI bill is your after serving one year. The GI bill not only pays 60 percent of your flight school but you also get 1300 a month just for going to school. Its the only way flight school is accomplishable for me as I have a wife and kid.

[Justin DBC]

I just joined this Forum today because I am looking for some advice. I am home from Iraq now with my Army National Guard unit. I am going to Start my Private License training in September. I just re-uped with my unit for 6 more years. That re-signing bonus will completely pay for that part of the deal. Also my GI Bill will pay for 60% of the rest of the training. I will be in Houston and am hoping to fly offshore for the the oil rigs. Anyone with Experience in this? Basically I want to know after all the proper training and licenses will I have what they are looking for. Will an Army Veteran with ten years in help on my resume. Are there any Vets on here doing what I am wanting to do? Any near Houston? actually anyone on here close to Houston? I really appreciate everyones posts on here. I have spent hours on here allready.

 

P.S. I am not a recruiter but If anyone would like to talk to me about joining the GUARD I would be more than happy to talk to you without being pushy. It has seriously helped me out and if you choose the right job like I did you will get 20,000 for a signing bonus and the GI bill is your after serving one year. The GI bill not only pays 60 percent of your flight school but you also get 1300 a month just for going to school. Its the only way flight school is accomplishable for me as I have a wife and kid.

 

I got off of active duty a couple of years ago and joined the guard. I started flight training last August and now have a PPL working towards my commercial, instrument, CFI, etc etc etc. It's been a great experience, but you need to make sure that you know what you're getting into. That 60% reimbursment, so you need to come up with the money first and wait for them to pay you. The process takes a while, so you need to make sure you have some back-up money to tide you over. Also, I don't know where you heard that the GI Bill pays you 1300 a month on top of the 60%, but unless I'm missing something and being broke for no reason, that's not the case. the 60% is all you get if you are doing flight training.

 

I'm still training, but as far as working offshore, you need to rack up around 1000 hours by working as a CFI or finding some other low-paying job after you get all your certifications. The military thing may help you, but depending on your MOS, I wouldn't count on it too much. I was Infantry on active duty for 5 years and reclassed as a UH-60 crewchief when I got into the guard. Even though I'm very knowledgeable about the complex systems on turbine aircraft and operations that most pilots don't get a chance to get a taste of until late in their careers, the point is I'm not behind the controls. Being in the military shows dedication, but so does going through the strenuous process of racking up 1000 hours rotary wing time. It might not make you as competitive as you are thinking it will.

 

Have you thought of putting in a warrant packet? I might be doing that myself within the next few months. Even if you just want to pursue it in the civilian world and keep your current military job (which is why I don't want to put one in), I would strongly suggest getting all your ducks in a row to go that route in case you end up stuck with a private rating which is very fun, but quite useless if you can't pay for the time.

 

I don't have as much experience as a lot of the other people on this board, but I'd be glad to answer any questions I can. I'm not trying to discourage you, but be ready for an uphill battle.

 

Stay safe when you head back over to the sandbox!

 

J-

[Pogue]

Another Guard type here... Check with your state about tuition reimbursement as well. Arizona picked up $6500 worth of my flight training on top of what the GI Bill got. Don't know about Texas but it never hurts to check...

[Cannon2Cockpit]

Well I must have been mistaken..... In illinois they paid for all my college and I recieved the 1300 a month for attending. I figured that since I am attending a 141??? school that I would get the 1300 a month plus they would pay the 60% of the training. I dont start my trainig till september so I will definatly ask around. So the 60% they pay for gets reimbursed to you once a month or what?

[Justin DBC]

I think it's supposed to be once a month. I just turned in my paperwork so I'm not sure.

 

As far as additional money... As pogue stated your state MIGHT help out, but there isn't any additional funds you'll get from the federal GI Bill

 

J-

[Pogue]

You don't get the flat rate like you did for college, but every month the school submits your hours (both flight and ground) and the VA pays on a monthly basis. Also you are not limited to $1300 per month. What program are you applying under? Being Guard I used the REAP program which was set up specifically for deployed NG people. It prorates the benefit based on how much time you were activated. My unit was active for 15 months so I got 60 % of the VA benefit (That worked out to getting reimbursed for 36% of the covered costs.) If you qualify for Ch. 30 you get the 60%. The new Chapter 31 has a whole new set of rules that I'm not completely familiar with, but it sounds like it's more restrictive than the older programs. The bad news is that they don't pay for private, and the pay lags by about three months. This means you need to have all of your private and most of your instrument covered without VA. Of course that makes for a nice increase in available funds once you hit commercial. That was where the state tuition reimbursement was golden - Arizona considered it vocational training and would pay for private as well. Also the turn around time was better. Talk to your state education officer about it. Also make sure you have your second class medical before you take any courses that you expect the VA to reimburse for - you don't need from the schools perspective, but it is one of the VA requirements.